DO MICROPHONE ISOLATION SHIELDS WORK?

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SHOULD YOU BUY a microphone isolation shield?

Maybe you are looking at an affordable studio setup for some voice work, or perhaps you just need to block out an annoying sound coming from the fridge.

Are these things worth it?

They come in all shapes and sizes - even like a ball, with the Kaotica Eyeball.

But do they work?

And if so, why doesn’t everyone own one?

Well, there is some good and bad here, so lets break down the isolation shield, and what it might mean for your setup.

FUNDAMENTALS

So the concept of these is pretty simple right?

Put your mic in, and voila, you have a small little studio sounding area, where your voice is controlled.

Now as I mentioned before, they come in all shapes and sizes, though the pricing is all around the same amount, in the one to two hundred dollar range.

The most popular would be the Kaotica Eyeball, which sits in the higher end of that pricing.

And they all work in the same way, by damming up your voice, so it cant escape and run rampant across your untreated room, and getting back into your mic.

But they also can work as a literal shield against other unwanted sound from getting into your mic.

But if they did all that, why wouldn’t everyone own one of these?

Because all of what I just typed out sounds great, right?

Well, there are a few reasons.

AN IMPERFECT SOLUTION

For this, we are going to need some extreme testing, so we are going to rely on Kitchen Aiden.

You see, most microphones gather sound from all directions, whether you like it or not.

Now, on most cardioid mics, you will notice the clearest sound comes from sources in front of the mic.

That said, as you move around the mic, it is still picking up variable levels of sound, depending on where you are on the mic capsule.

So inevitably, this shield ends up blocking all the sound leaking into your audio from one of those off axis positions.

That is both good and bad.

For one, those sounds are bad, and you don’t want them.

But the other side of that argument is the inherent boxiness that you run into when you decide to deaden all those extra frequencies that your mic is used to picking up.

But the biggest issue is right in front of you.

Remember, the front of the mic is the intended side of the mic for picking up sound.

And wouldn’t you know it, that is the one side of the mic that is not protected by the shield.

So any sound coming from behind is fair game.

Now I can hear you asking me, Aiden, doesn’t the shield also block your voice and in turn, stop reverb?

Well, not completely.

Now, depending on the read you are going for, you will have drastically different results.

For example, a close and intimate read might sound perfectly fine, as you will be close on the mic, and probably lowered your voice.

A normal read though, you will start to hear the reverb on your voice.

And a hard read, well, its all but a ruined recording isn’t it?

Why is that?

Shouldn’t this shield completely stop your voice?

Well…not really.

You see, the sound that comes out of your face hole doesn’t come out in a straight line.

In fact, it comes out at all angles, which is why you can mic yourself with a shogun mic from above.

Which means, while you are still getting rid of your voice going directly forward, and somewhat off to the side, all this other voice is escaping.

But does this mean these things are trash and don’t have any use?

Well, let’s talk about that.

DEALING WITH THE IMPERFECTIONS

So, that was obviously a worst case scenario for the purpose of the demonstration.

But, there is good reason for it.

These things are NOT a studio in a box.

It won’t ever completely take the place of a properly treated space, and buying one expecting that, will always lead to disappointment.

So then, what is the point of it?

Well, it is a rather inelegant solution for those of us who have some semblance of treatment on some walls.

Even a studio like mine (see video above) is far from perfect, and won’t be able to perfectly isolate my voice.

But something like an isolation shield, would allow me to record without worry, as long as the space behind me was treated.

And honesty, this goes for anyone.

Smart placement of this it will benefit you as well.

Something - ANYTHING on the walls behind you will severely limit the amount of reverb getting back into the mic.

Curtains, bookshelves…whatever you have.

THE PERFECT SOLUTION

And of course, there is the perfect situation for which isolation shields can offer a solution.

Most notably, with sound rejection from other sources than your voice.

Specifically, things that are leaking into your recording.

I am talking fridge noises, computer sounds, street noise, HVAC…the list is endless.

One of the great things about this, is it literally takes the off axis rejection of your mic and turns it up to 100.

And of course, if you made sure the area behind you is treated well, you may very well have the perfect solution.

I will have a few linked down below the video if you want to give one a shot.